


That Night

by learningtoacceptchange



Category: Adventure Time
Genre: Concert, F/F, Tea, Teasing, past relationship, t-shirt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-16
Updated: 2016-03-23
Packaged: 2018-05-27 02:04:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,415
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6265357
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/learningtoacceptchange/pseuds/learningtoacceptchange





	1. Chapter 1

     Princess Bonnibel Bubblegum sighed wearily, pulling the goggles away from her eyes as she stood. "Another day, another set of experiments and studies to go," she mumbled, having lost track of time. What time was it? Was it even nighttime? Was it even a weekday? Once she left her darkened laboratory, the answer became clear. The palace was quiet, save for the faint clattering of the banana guards.

     Passing by an open window, she looked out into the newly revealed star-lit night. Bubblegum found herself stopping at the window, looking out at the city within her kingdom's walls, and further away lay the vast, rolling landscape of Ooo. The moon shone brightly, illuminating almost everything to be seen. A breeze drifted past the window, the fresh scent of trees and sugar a comfort after being cooped up for so long...

     ... And oddly, another scent mingled with the smells of Ooo on a dark summer's evening. 'Is that apples?' She raised an eyebrow suspiciously, knowing that Tree Trunks's apple pies were delicious, but she was out of town with Mr. Pig and their son Sweet P... 

     A dark figure popped out of the shadows, red eyes blazing as newly bared fangs snarled from a mane of tangled black hair. "Graaaaghghghaghbbhaagg!" 

     Bubblegum blinked once, then yawned. "Oh, hello Marceline." 

     The monster froze, and began shifting back into the lanky, familiar form of her friend, drifting through the window to hover idly in front of the princess. "Really? Not even a start? Wow, Bonnie, you must be cold-blooded tonight. Did someone spit into your tea-" 

     Marceline the Vampire Queen looked wryly amused, until her expression changed into concern. "Oh, no, you've been on another lab crush," she sighed. "How many times did you chase away your butler from the lab?" 

     "Twenty-two times," Bubblegum yawned. "New record." 

     The sound of Bonnibel's tired voice and her now swaying form caused Marceline to reach out, cradling the unprotesting princess in her arms. "Hang on, girlfriend, you're getting into bed, now," she nodded decisively, drifting down the hall to the princess' room. 

     "But... experiments need monitoring... ratio of heat to cold... beakers," Bubblegum's words blurred together. She wanted to protest louder, but the sleep that she so often claimed to 'punch with her mind' was steadily gaining control. The lab coat was removed, the crown placed safely on a table, and she found herself slipped into the covers of her bed. 

     "No way, Bubbs. You're staying here until I know for certain you're going to sleep," the vampire countered, unslinging her guitar around her back to sit at the bedside. A few quiet chords rang out, and Bubblegum found herself relaxing against the soft blankets and warming sheets. She yawned again, blinking as she rallied one more time- but for a different reason. 

     "Marcy?"

     The chords stopped, as Marceline turned to look at the princess. "Yeah?"

     "Tell me a story..." 

     Red eyes blinked in surprise, then a toothy grin appeared. But this wasn't the wry grin of before- there was a touch of tenderness in that smile. 

     "Alright, buddy. I think I've got one... Do you remember when you went to one of my concerts for the first time?"


	2. Chapter 2

She had kept her back to the wall that night, wearing a dark cloak and keeping herself hidden from the gathered crowd. 'It might be best if I keep myself disguised,' Bubblegum had reasoned, when she was hemming and hawing about her decision to attend the concert that night. 

It was at the Candy Tavern, one of many one-night shows that Marceline had decided to perform while on the move. "C'mon, at least come to one of them while I'm in town!" The vampire had grinned toothily, strumming her bass as the princess was checking on a print-out of schematics in her lab. "You haven't heard me play yet." 

This had been met with a sideways look. "I've heard you play your guitar a lot, Marceline-"

"But never on a stage before," she had winked, with an infuriating sort of confidence. "And I know you've cleared your checklist for the night, that clipboard's full of x's. Please, Bonnie, I really want to see you tonight." 

That had caused the princess to look away from her experiment, which was bubbling just a little more fiercely than usual. She hadn't heard Marceline ask something of her in quite that tone of voice, it was... wistful, and hopeful at the same time. "Well... alright."

A triumphant chord rang out. "Ha! I knew you were going to say yes to me!" Marceline's grin brightened, the confidence giving way to a kind of giddy excitement. "The show's at seven, but the curtain goes up at eight. See you tonight!" 

Bubblegum hadn't been able to shout a reply at Marceline's retreating form, as the vampire had immediately flew out. She felt slightly chagrined at how easily she was convinced, but at the same time knew that seeing one show wouldn't hurt her. 'I'll get to see what all the fuss is about, anyway.' she reasoned, turning back to the beaker and quickly turning down the heat. 

Now, she was almost surrounded by waves of Candy Kingdom citizens, and recognized a few from the Grocery Kingdom, the Breakfast Kingdom, even a group of Fire Kingdom teens who were off smouldering among themselves. She was used to these kinds of crowds, but packed into the tavern this closely was a brand new experience. Overhead, strobelights and colored lasers flashed, painting the darkened room in bursts of blue, yellow, pink and green. The noise of the gathered crowd was much louder than normal, with snippets of conversation drifting to her-

"Hey, you guys made it in time! Do you think she'll sing 'Boys for Breakfast'?"  
"Wow, did you hear about the concert Marceline did last month? The sounds echoed for DAYS!"   
"Drinks are on me! No, seriously, stop spilling them on me!"   
"Nice t-shirt, yo!"

That last remark had Bubblegum turn to see two members of the Grocery Kingdom, one of them wearing a black t-shirt with an odd picture. It looked like a cake-pop and a bonbon, skewered and dripping chocolate into a blue lake with a background of bright green trees, as a gold serpent slithered around the staked figures, hissing menacingly. It was... certainly interesting, if weird. But the one wearing the shirt was beaming proudly. "Yeah, it's from a show I went to! A real novelty item, with only, like, ten of them made!" 

Any further discussion was cut off as the lights darkened, and cheers rang out. A chant began and was taken up by the crowd. "Marceline! Marceline! Marceline!" 

Seconds later, the red curtains parted, and there was Marceline, sitting on a tall bar chair, bass in her lap as she waved out at the excited crowd. "Hey Candy Kingdom, are you ready to rock?" She said, her voice low and sinuous. Bubblegum actually shivered as more cheers rang out in reply. 

Behind Marceline, a drummer twirled his sticks eagerly, a tall man had his fingers poised over the keyboard, and another girl stood nearby, giving a few tuning strums on her guitar. Looks were exchanged, the drummer's sticks clapped out four times, and then-

The shock of the sound wave nearly pressed Bubblegum into the wall, but it was as if a gigantic heart had begun beating, the music echoing in her chest and thrumming through the air. The crowds of people jumped up and down, dancing and swaying to the rhythm. Marceline grinned, showing her fangs as she hovered off of the chair and towards the mic, her voice pitched up to the music. 

'You're gonna be my breakfast, baby, you're gonna be my brunch!" 

*****  
The songs ended up blurring together after a while- Bubblegum wasn't quite sure when one began and another ended, but the crowd was certainly getting into them. She had gone to the bar, wanting to get a drink to soothe her dry throat. It had tasted of licorice and lime, and was a bit stronger than she was used to. The table beneath her hand was sticky, so she rubbed it on her cloak to get rid of the residue. 

She had to admit, it was interesting to be among her people so closely and watching them having fun. 'Definitely something to record later, maybe they enjoy other types of music as well,' the princess reasoned. Just then the music's intensity lowered to a much mellower sound, and she looked up at the stage. 

Marceline hovered at the mic, strumming her bass with a deeper, more intentional inflection. It was as if pieces of the night sky were being plucked out of the air with each note. "This next one's a new song, for a very good friend of mine," the vampire said, her voice softening. 

"I guess we've both got shells we need to break through,   
I've never known anybody quite like you,   
I guess there's more to life than hiding away...  
You don't have to hold back when you're with me,   
You can play sometimes, just let your work be,   
And we can face troubles together, come what may..." 

Bubblegum felt a blush rising to her cheeks. Was Marceline singing about... her? 

"But sometimes I can't get through to you,   
And you put up walls no matter what I do,   
But those walls will come tumbling down anyway..."

Marceline's eyes stared out at the crowd, until they fell on a cloaked figure in the back. She grinned suddenly, then strummed her way into the chorus.

"Baby, come back down to Earth,  
Can't you see how much you're worth?   
I'm gonna pop your bubble, darling,   
I'm gonna bring you back home...

We both know how it is lose our way,   
And even if neither of us can stay,   
I'm gonna pop your bubble, darling,   
I'm gonna bring you back home..." 

Bubblegum felt the blush deepen, and she had to turn away to keep from blurting out Marceline's name. The figure on the stage only grinned, continuing her song. 

*****  
At the end of the night, most of the crowd had drifted out of the bar, save for the bartender and the band that was packing up. Marceline was hovering idly by the stage as the cloaked figure walked over to her, peering out from under the hood. 

"Marceline...?"

The vampire looked up and immediately her grinned brightened. "Hey, Bonnie! What did you think?" 

This question was met with a somewhat shaky laugh. "It was... definitely more than I expected. Just... everything was more than I expected!" Bubblegum managed a smile, though a tinge of blush was still on her cheeks. 

Marceline laughed softly. "The first concert can be like that- slightly overwhelming, but a good time overall." The vampire hesitated, giving her friend a concerned look. "Did you have a good time?" 

"Yes! I-I mean, it's not what I'm used to, but I did like it!" Bubblegum quickly reassured her friend. Marceline nodded, her smile reappearing. 

"Awesome. Oh, hey, I have something for you!" The vampired hovered onto the stage and disappeared behind one of the curtains, only to reappear carrying a black t-shirt. When Bubblegum opened it, the logo was the same as the limited edition t-shirt. "Oh, wow, Marceline! Thank you!" 

Their eyes met, and Bubblegum found herself briefly lost in that red-eyed gaze. "Consider it a memento of your first concert, Princess," the vampire smiled. "Me and the others are going to an afterparty for the evening. Do you want to come with us?" 

Bubblegum shook her head. "It sounds fun, but I should get back home. A lot of things have to be done..." She had the grace to look apologetic about it, but Marceline nodded. "No worries, Bonnie. It was cool seeing you." 

"You too," Bubblegum turned away, but suddenly turned back. "Uh... that new song you sang, who was that- I mean, um... was it about someone?" The question stuck in her throat, and she cursed the blush that never seemed to fade away. Marceline blinked, but a slow smirk appeared on her lips as she drifted forward, close to Bubblegum. Very, very close, as the princess found herself staring into those red eyes again, as a forked tongue slid out to briefly lick at her dried lips. 

"Who do you think it was about, Bonnie?" Marceline breathed the words, almost whispering them. She blinked as Bubblegum said something unintelligible and fled towards the door, still clutching the shirt. The vampire stared after her, but grinned again, thinking about how cute it was to see the prim princess blush like that...

Bubblegum had ran all the way back to the palace, taking the secret tunnels in to her room. As she put away the cloak, a knock sounded at the door. "Princess, are you alright?" Peppermint Butler's voice rang out. 

"I-I'm fine, thanks!" Bubblegum managed to reply, hiding the shirt behind her back as the door opened. "I've brought your tea for the evening," the butler said, placing the tray down onto a nearby table. "If you need anything, just feel free to call me." 

"Thank you, Peppermint, that'll be all," Bubblegum said, able to breath once more. The butler turned away, careful to keep his expression open and polite. "I hope you have a good night, Princess." 

The door shut again, and Bubblegum found herself bringing the shirt up from behind her. An odd aroma drifted towards her nose, and inquisitively, she brought it to her nose, sniffing. 

Memories of the night came drifting back; the flashing lights, the noise and good feeling of the gathered crowd, the smell of drinks and sweat in the air, the music echoing in her ears, and a soft red gaze, playfully holding her own... Despite herself, Bubblegum found she was smiling. 

*****  
Marceline strummed a few more chords, turning when she found Bubblegum had fallen asleep, breathing softly. The vampire smiled, reaching out to brush a few strands of hair from the princess' face. Bubblegum didn't move. 

The vampire looked towards the window. Dawn would be in a few hours, but the way the bed was positioned, finding the shade in the room would be pretty easy. "Sleep well, princess," she whispered, shrinking downward and taking on her smaller bat form. But rather than hiding beneath it, she found herself snuggling into the pillow, breathing in the sugary scent of Bubblegum's hair. It was soothing, and soon afterward, the vampire had joined in friend in slumber.


End file.
